Explore idyllic fishing villages, visit Italian castles, shop till you drop in Milan, journey through the Tuscan countryside and take a scenic stroll along the waterfront at Lake Como. Marvel at the dramatic coastlines of the Amalfi Coast and Sicily. See art in the Vatican Museums and Roman history unfold everywhere. Just some of the experiences you'll enjoy on your tour through Italy and Sicily.
We are the world’s leading and most awarded travel brand spanning all 7 continents of the globe. From the iconic to the unexpected our guests connect to...more the real depth of the places we go. They will break bread with the locals at our exclusive Be My Guest experiences and unlock local secrets of our Travel Directors and Local Specialists. Everything is taken care of, so they travel with true ease and get the real thing without worrying about a thing. We consider how we can positively impact the communities we engage with. Through our JoinTrafalgar initiatives powered by TreadRight, guests don’t just leave footprints on the ground, but leave a lasting legacy for the betterment of locals and the future of their communities. It’s 72 years of destination experience and feedback from over 5 million happy guests that fuels our innovation to continually delivery simply the best holidays.
Intrepid Travel has been taking travellers off the beaten track to discover the world's most amazing places for 30 years. Every trip is designed to truly...more experience local culture - to meet local people, try local food, take local transport and stay in local accommodation. Led by a local leader, our small group tours offer a sustainable way to travel off the beaten track, while giving back to the places and people that travellers visit.
Topdeck is a collective of explorers who are devoted to travel, we strive to open minds, shift perspectives, learn new things and make a difference. We...more build epic group trips for 18 to 30 somethings and our passion is to inspire young people through life-changing travel experiences. With over 46 years’ experience, our business is to make travel dreams a reality, we know what works and we’re not afraid to shout about it. We offer variety, comfort and value for money, and promise a hassle-free holiday, loaded with authentic local experiences. With loads of free time to explore, heaps of included meals, access to some amazing bucket list activities and the opportunity to meet a whole bunch of like-minded young travellers, Topdeck trips are way more than your average package tour. They’re the experience of a lifetime. We build the trips. You build the memories. So, if you’re looking for an unforgettable adventure? Topdeck’s the only choice!
Discover Must do experiences and highlights throughout Italy & Sicily
Visit the Vatican Museums
With fast tracked or out of hours entry to the Vatican Museum and St Peter's Basilica, a local guide shares the amazing and vast collections.
Soak up Tuscany in Montecatini Terme
Visit this historic spa town, a great base for exploring the highlights of Tuscany. Find modern and historic architecture style and soak in beautiful, healing spa pools.
Head Across to Capri
Take a ferry across the Bay of Naples to soak up the sophistication of the Island of Capri. Pass the dramatic coastline to find stylish hotels and boutique shopping.
Explore the Taormina Riviera
Find your seat in the ancient Greek Theatre and breathe in the dramatic views over the Taormina coastline and the live performances of Mount Etna. Set high on the cliff, colour and beauty is all around.
Take a Gondola Ride in Venice
Soak up the romance of Venice as you glide along the canals under ornate bridges and between the colourful homes and historic buildings. It might be a Venice cliché but it’s never passé.
Recent Reviews What our clients are saying about touring Italy & Sicily
True Indulgence Susan, NSW, Australia, Oct 2024
The Italian Indulgence tour was my 5th tour with Backroads and possibly the most outstanding. A perfect blend of rural countryside, beautiful lakes and historic cities. There were many highlights for me including staying in the beautiful villas in the Florentine and Langhe Hills, Truffle hunting with Mia the dog, spending time in the elegant Portofino ...read more and enjoying the beautiful Italian Lakes namely Maggiore, Como and Molveno. The pace of the tour was ideal, the hotels away from bus loads of tourists and the culture exquisite. I would highly recommend this tour and the guide, Beatrice. Thank you Tracey and the team at Global Journeys for your assistance in making this dream holiday come to fruition. You have always provided first class service. I will always be a Backroads fan.
Splendours of Italy tour is amazing! Boris & Irina , NSW, Australia, Sep 2024
Excellent itinerary, which is perfectly designed to give good exposure to this beautiful country. Will definitely travel with CostSaver again. Highly recommended.
Amazing tour! Karen, New Zealand, Sep 2024
I would definitely travel with Trafalgar again, well organised and interesting tour taking in all the Italian highlights. Had a great tour director (Sasha) who was accomodating and knowledgeable.
Enjoyable Tour of Apulia Michelle, NSW, Australia, Sep 2024
We had a group of 40, with most being Australian, with a few English and Americans. The region is covered in olive groves and vineyards, although we did drive through some pretty farming country on our way back to Naples. There were many lovely old town centres to explore, and I particularly loved seeing the Truli houses in Alberobello. Be prepared ...read more for quite a bit of walking on cobbled streets (often quite steep), in the old towns on this tour. On a couple of occasions we were given time for lunch and to explore on our own after our guided walking tour, but many felt these breaks were too long. Be warned that in Italy there are very few public toilets, and even if an actual tourist attraction has onsite toilets, they often don't work. When you do manage to find a public one, there's often a huge queue and you have to pay (anything from 50c -1.20 Euro). The recommendation from the tour guide was to sit down to eat or have coffee at a cafe, as they always have a free toilet.
Optional tour - "Apulian Delights" Farm Fresh Dinner & Pizzzica Show - I had expected that going to a farm we would be shown around the farm itself, but we were just given a short tour of the farm buildings and a brief history, followed by a dinner made from farm fresh ingredients, with about 3/4 hour of music & local dances - guests were encouraged to join in the dancing. Although I enjoyed the evening, I felt it was a bit pricey for what it was.
Optional tour - Caves of Matera with Altamura - took 2 hours to drive there, but the countryside was pretty on the way there. I enjoyed the walking tour of Matera to see the ancient cave houses, (we even saw a movie being made there), but felt that the walking tour of Altamura was a bit of a let down. I very much enjoyed the day, and felt this tour was worth the money.
The accommodation on the tour was fairly good, except for the location of the Holiday Inn in Naples - it's in the central business district, which isn't in a very pleasant area, with empty and derelict buildings surrounding it, and no food shops anywhere near. If you're a solo traveller I wouldn't recommend walking to the railway station on your own. Naples is very dirty, with garbage and graffiti absolutely everywhere, so except for using Naples as a base for visiting Pompeii, I personally wouldn't recommend spending much time there.
Cosmos no longer pay for portage, so you have to take your own suitcase to and from the bus each day, so I recommend you don't have a big or heavy one. Our coach driver was very good and I felt safe in his hands, as he maneuvered the huge bus through tiny streets and tight corners in the old towns. Our tour guide hasn't being doing it for very long, and to me it showed, (other tour members agreed with me). Unfortunately she wasn't as flexible as she should have been with passengers who requested a bathroom stop, or those who were struggling doing all the walking.
All in all an interesting and enjoyable tour, but not the best Cosmos tour I've been on. Thanks to Tracey for helping me organise the trip. I look forward to booking my next tour through Global Journeys again.
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